Cincinnati, OH - The Berea College women's basketball team headed north to take on the NCAA Division III Lions of Mount St. Joseph.  The Mountaineers entered the game with a 6-5 record compared to the 1-7 record of MSJ.  In a back and forth battle the Mountaineers came out on top with a 74-71 win over the Lions.  

The score stayed close for the majority of the first quarter.  Berea found themselves down 17-11 after the Lions went on a 7-0 run late in the quarter.  Erica Rogers dropped a shot from behind the arc with 40 seconds left in the quarter to bring the score to 17-14 going into the second period.  Rogers connected first for the Mountaineers in the second quarter hitting another three and tieing the game 17-17.  That three sparked a 7-0 run by the Mountaineers and they regained a 21-17 lead over the Lions.  Rogers finished off the half going 5-5 from behind the arc and the Mountaineers went into the half with a 33-28 lead.  

Berea came out ready to play in the 3rd quarter.  The Mountaineer defense caused four early turnovers which sparked a 8-0 run increasing their lead to 41-28.  The Lions spent the rest of the quarter trying to cut into the the Mountaineer lead.  With 2:47 left in the third quarter the Lions hit a three pointer to bring them within two, 49-47.  Berea held onto their lead for the rest of the quarter and went into the final quarter with a 53-51 advantage.  In the fourth quarter the score remained close and with 4:23 left to play the Lions were able to tie the score at 60-60.  Bethanie Williams went on to score 9 points in the last four minutes of the game to help Berea hold on for a 74-71 win over the Lions.  

Four Mountaineers scored in the double digits with Adriana Williams leading the way with 21 points.  Rogers finished with 19 going 6-8 from behind the arc, Bethanie Williams ended with 11 and Anna Loveless finished with a double double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.  The Mountaineers won the game from the free-throw line shooting 88.9% (16-18) compared to the 46.2% (6-13) that the Lions shot.

Berea will be back in action on January 2nd taking on Trine University on day one of the OHIO Tournament hosted by Wilmington College.  Tip-Off is scheduled for 8:00 PM.